Norwegian word choices
Ha lyst på vs ha lyst til: want something or want to do something?
Want something: ha lyst på. Want to do something: ha lyst til å. Try four everyday situations.
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Four practice notes
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Situations, answers and short explanations.
Prompt
You feel like having coffee. Jeg har lyst ___ kaffe. Choose på or til.
Answer and explanation
Jeg har lyst på kaffe. I feel like having coffee. Coffee is the thing you want: use lyst på.
Prompt
You feel like going for a walk. Jeg har lyst ___ å gå en tur. Choose på or til.
Answer and explanation
Jeg har lyst til å gå en tur. I feel like going for a walk. Going for a walk is an action: use lyst til å.
Prompt
You see a bun at the bakery and want one. Jeg har lyst ___ en bolle. Choose på or til.
Answer and explanation
Jeg har lyst på en bolle. I feel like having a bun. The bun is the thing you want: use lyst på.
Prompt
You feel like cooking dinner at home. Jeg har lyst ___ å lage middag hjemme. Choose på or til.
Answer and explanation
Jeg har lyst til å lage middag hjemme. I feel like cooking dinner at home. Cooking is the action you want to do: use lyst til å.
The difference
Ha lyst på: want something. Jeg har lyst på kaffe (I feel like having coffee).
Ha lyst til å: want to do something. Jeg har lyst til å gå en tur (I feel like going for a walk).
Learn these common patterns as a whole: ha lyst på before the thing, and ha lyst til å before the action. Keep the å before the verb. This is not a general rule for every use of på and til.
Try the food pattern in the bakery guide.
Reference: NTNU: lyst på and lyst til. Practice examples are original.